Alberta Authors
http://tlc.epsb.ca/aauthor/vaage/

I participated as the author for several schools and we worked collaboratively to create new stories.

Alberta Seasons
http://www.stmonica.ecsd.net/seasons.htm

This project is part of a provincial collaboration under the coordination of teacher, Sandra Gluth, from Edmonton Public Schools.  Learning activities for both fall and winter are highlighted on this web site.

Animals Around the World
http://www.animalsaroundtheworld.ecsd.net  

Some of St. Monica grade ones studied animals around the world. They  investigated methods of researching and recording data in the process of discovering information about their interest in animals. 

Author-in-Residence
http://www.authorinresidence.ecsd.net

In 2001 - 2002 I worked at St. Mary School as an author-in-residence/teacher. Because I had published one children's book Bibi and the Bull, I had experienced first hand the writing-publishing process. As I worked with the fifteen grade 3-6 classes in this school, I shared the collaborative information we created. Students have writing in several genres posted on this site.

Beginning to Inquire
http://www.beginningtoinquire.ecsd.net/

A telecollaborative project created by teachers and students as they come to understand inquiry-based learning.

Birds and Flight
http://www.birdsandflight.ecsd.net/

Classes across Alberta joined together to create a wonderful resource on birds and flight. The younger children focused on birds, and the Grade 6 students contributed their knowledge of flight.

Beyond 100 Day
http://www.beyond100day.ecsd.net

Teachers and students share activities for their 100 days-in-school celebration and how they extended the learning.

Bugs
http://www.bugs.ecsd.net
Teachers and their classes from k-3 became "bugsters" during May and June. This site showcases some of the study and exciting learning that happened!

Building Classroom Community
http://www.classroomcommunity.ecsd.net/

Each year teachers and students come together in the fall to begin a year of "living" together. Students and teachers have shared what they do in their classroom to help make a positive learning community.

Canada Goose Rhymes
http://www.canadagooserhymes.ecsd.net    

Using rhyme is important for young children's early literacy development, but most traditional Nursery Rhymes are based on European history. This project attempted to work with classes on Nursery Rhymes to create original ones based on Canadian/North American settings. An unexpected disappointment followed when we realized that the children were not able to reach this level of abstraction and change of perspective at the kindergarten and grade 1 levels. However, the teachers created 40 different verses that can be used in classes. We still welcome new additions any time.

Canada Project 
AWARD WINNING!
http://www.canadaproject.ecsd.net
This project involves 11 kindergarten and grade 1 teachers and their classes sharing their interest in and research about Canada. The web site includes links to a breadth of topics to enhance children's research. Children's research is displayed on the site.

Canadian Author Studies
http://www.canadianauthorstudies.ecsd.net/

Several teachers and classes from kindergarten, Grade 1, Grade 2, a-a-a-and Grade 3 collaborated to create this web site dedicated to our favorite Canadian authors.

Castles Under the Rainbow
http://www.castlesundertherainbow.ecsd.net

St. Monica and St. Mary have used Sky Castles as the theme for the year and many classes have begun studies involving castles. Possible contributions include building castles, castle life, fairy tales and legends. The idea of the sky castle, or castle under the rainbow also appeals to the creative imagination of possibilities which will also be included in this web site.

Children of God
http://www.childrenofgod.ecsd.net

Teachers and their classes will document: celebrations with movies, images, and text write-ups; class religion activities with digital photos or scanned work; focus on the liturgical year; religion centers; prayers - found and created; core values in action; spiritual writing - stories, poems; and spiritual art.

Dinosaur Project
http://www.dinosaur.ecsd.net
This project involved 10 kindergarten and grade 1 teachers and their classes as they explored the world of dinosaurs. Children collaborated with the other classes as they shared their knowledge to build this web site.

Documenting Young Children's Learning
http://www.youngchildrenslearning.ecsd.net
This project is an attempt to capture children's learning in non-traditional ways, using multimedia and electronic formats. Twenty teachers, administrators, and professors from across North America are collaborating to develop this web site using the philosophical base of Reggio and Assessment for Learning. The children in each program were active participants in selecting, gathering and formatting the data.

Early Literacy
http://www.earlyliterature.ecsd.net
This site continues to be one of the best practical literacy sites I know of for teachers of k-3. We compiled almost 2,000 poems organized by topic so that teachers could find and access them as needed. In addition, we summarized current research on early literacy development and the classroom implications and relevant strategies resulting from that research. Any contributions of poems or strategies are welcomed.

Electronic Portfolios
http://www.electronicportfolios.ecsd.net

Children from grades k-3 showcase their learning via the newest format for portfolios - published technology. The classes demonstrate a variety of topics as well as technological expertise within this site. Parents, students and teachers celebrated this progressiveness.

Endangered Animals
http://www.stmonica.ecsd.net/cv%20endangered%20animals.htm

Our class chose to study the endangered animals of the Arctic because we are interested in the North.  Each child completed their own research at home or at school, and with the assistance of our student teacher, typed in their report and inserted clip art using Microsoft Word.

Franklin
http://www.franklin.ecsd.net
Franklin the turtle is a favorite story character for young children. Ten kindergarten and grade 1 teachers and their classes created a web site to celebrate Franklin, his creators, and his stories. Children contributed original work and graphics to share with others around the world.

Halloween
http://www.halloween.ecsd.net

A telecollaborative project with K, Gr. 1, and Gr. 2 to celebrate the spooktacular fun and learning for this holiday.

Inspired by Music
http://www.inspiredbymusic.ecsd.net/

Planning for this project began early in the school year, when the teachers began discussing using music to assist developing long-term memory for kids within content areas of learning. Ongoing dialogue has continued throughout as our projects developed so that we could share ideas and encourage each other. Teachers and classes reviewed the components and posted comments on the summation page outlining the benefits of using music to enhance learning.

International Author Studies
http://www.internationalauthors.ecsd.net

Several teachers and classes from kindergarten, Grade 1, Grade 2, and Grade 3 collaborated to create this web site dedicated to our favorite International authors.

Keeping Christ in Christmas
http://www.keepingchristinchristmas.ecsd.net

Several classes across Alberta shared their spiritual activities for the Christmas season within the Catholic context.

Kindergarten Literacy
http://www.kinderlit.ecsd.net

Eight teachers in Alberta attempted to record all literacy events as they occurred in their kindergarten classrooms throughout the year. This proved to be a massive task, but one that was exceptionally fruitful. As a result of creating this web site, we noticed similarities and consistencies within the unique world of each classroom. Several teachers used this information to create a new working model for Kindergarten Literacy, which we simple called "Balanced Literacy for Kindergarten". We created a list of developmentally appropriate literacy centers and planning board. This was original work specifically created for kindergarten.

Learning to Read
http://www.learningtoread.ecsd.net

Kindergarten and Grade 1 teachers combined their expertise to create a web site that documents the process of how children come to learn to read through the classroom experience, environment, and interactions. Parents have commented on the value of reading through this site to help them understand the processes involved in this complex topic.

Learning to Write
http://www.learningtowrite.ecsd.net

The teachers at St. Monica School along with several other primary teachers pooled their understanding of how young children learn to write. Classroom ideas are shared, ideas for parent hand-outs, and examples of student writing are shared on this web site.

Literature for Literacy
http://www.literatureforliterature.ecsd.net

Phonemic awareness emerged as a topic from our Early Literacy Project. From the research, we learned that it is critical for children to develop this oral skill within an integrated context. This site outlines the research, classroom implications, and strategies. In addition, classes helped to locate literature that exemplified specific phonemic concepts.

Math Connections
http://www.mathproject.ecsd.net

Ten grade 1 and kindergarten teachers and their classes participated in this project to demonstrate how the Alberta Math Curriculum can be implemented using manipulatives and hands-on-learning versus a more traditional method.

Meeting Our Students
http://www.stmonica.ecsd.net/Meeting%20our%20Students.htm

Children showcased their early work with computers for the November conferences. The kindergarten students used KidPix for self-portraits, and the Grade ones used Kidspiration, KidPix and some PowerPoint.

Movie Making
http://www.moviemaking.ecsd.net/

This is a telecollaborative project involving all of the classes at St. Monica and St. Mary. The challenge was to create a one to two minute video/movie related to one or more of the following subjects:  technology, math, social studies, science, language arts, art, music, drama, health, physical education, religion or any study covered in school. The kindergarten and grade one students were involved in every step of the movie making from storyboarding to video editing and are excited to share their finished projects online. So come and check out what these amazing Canadian kids have accomplished.

Music Mania
http://www.musicmania.ecsd.net

This project explored using technology for music. It was an attempt to create a site for young children to hear simple songs and be able to read the accompanying text. It was our hope that children could create new lyrics to the midi melodies.

New Life
http://www.newlife.ecsd.net/

Several classes from Kindergarten to Grade 5 across Alberta joined together as they studied evidence of spring through new life!

Nutrition
http://www.nutrition.ecsd.net

This web site is a collaborative effort of students and teachers to build a resource center building awareness of good nutrition, and sharing ideas for good health and educating each other.

On-Line Books
http://www.onlinebooks.ecsd.net

In an attempt to use the electronic media of the worldwide web, several of us  collected stories created by our classes and published them online for easy access at school and at home.

Readers Theatre
http://www.readerstheatre.ecsd.net

In a search to find appropriate materials for grades K-3, we became aware of the shortfall in many areas, and so enlisted our classes to help create and locate appropriate pieces for Readers Theatre. We have over 150 small poems and pieces that can be used with young children. We welcome any new submissions to help the repertoire grow.

Rubrics by Kids
http://wwwrubricsbykids.ecsd.net

If we want children to learn to self-monitor their growth and achievement, they should learn to create, generate and implement rubrics. This project will document how children of all ages design class rubrics in a variety of subject areas and topics.

Snow Theme
http://www.snowtheme.ecsd.net

Living in Canada means enjoying the winter for several months of the year. Students and teachers delighted in sharing a few of the learning experiences based on winter topics.

Space
http://www.space.ecsd.net/

This telecollaborative project shares incredible learning about space - Mars, planets, the moon - with Alberta teachers and students from Kindergarten through to Grade 6.

The Human Body
INTERNATIONAL ACCLAIM!
http://www.thehumanbody.ecsd.net

The grade 2 class I worked with was very keen to do research and share it with the world... This interest evolved from a health topic that became a fully integrated topic involving science, language arts, social, fine arts, and math.

The Sea Project 
AWARD WINNING!
http://www.thesea.ecsd.net

The creation of this site earned St. Monica School "The Blue School Award" because of the knowledge and involvement of our classes in appreciation of Canada's oceans and marine life. The site contains student research and activities, ideas for teachers k-3 to implement a unit on the sea, and links to wonderful sites on the sea.

Webs on the Web
http://www.websonweb.ecsd.net

To encourage divergent thinking and higher level organizational brain work, we attempted to develop this site to share brainstorming webs with other classes. We have several brainstorming topics displayed that can be copied and printed or added to. This was a first attempt to work with Inspiration software.

Words for Beginning Readers
http://www.beginningreaders.ecsd.net

This web site will contain the 100 ~ high frequency words that Grade 1 children have to learn. Teachers and students will be on a hunt to find literature that showcases each of those special words. In addition, classes and teachers are invited to share poems or predictable stories that they have created to feature these special words.

Zoo School
http://www.zooschool.ecsd.net

St. Monica School's four classes of Grade Ones will be going to the Valley Zoo in February. This web site will document their learning journey as well as including links, web quests, animal web cams and special projects like Primate Habitats

St. Monica School Web Site
http://www.stmonica.ecsd.net

St. Monica School is an unbelievably perfect place for kindergarten and grade 1 children and this is I teach. I have truly been blessed!