Energy Stories: Connecting Classrooms Across Cultures

Students watch a 10-minute introduction video where the teacher explains the Eco Light project purpose, highlighting how their local energy discoveries will connect to global environmental action and their partnership with Australian students.

Students review the project goals and 5-week timeline together, exploring a visual roadmap of activities and deliverables posted on the Class2Class project board.

Each student identifies one personal interest or question about energy conservation and shares it on the project board, establishing their initial curiosity and investment in the project.

Students work in small groups to create a 2-3 minute video or digital presentation (using Google Slides or Canva) introducing their school, community, and local environment, including visuals of their neighborhood, school buildings, and natural surroundings.

Each group records personal introductions sharing their names, hobbies, and one interesting fact about their community's relationship with the environment or energy use.

Students post their cultural snapshot videos on the Class2Class project board for the Australian partner class to view.

Students watch the Australian partner class videos and post initial reactions and questions on the project board (e.g., 'What surprised you about their school?' or 'How is their environment different from ours?').

Using the group chat feature, students exchange quick messages with Australian peers, asking about similarities and differences they noticed in the videos.

Students collaborate to create a 'Getting to Know You' digital poster using Padlet, combining photos, fun facts, and questions from both classes to establish personal connections.

Teacher facilitates a guided brainstorming session asking: 'How do energy-saving habits reflect what we value in our communities?' Students contribute initial responses and discuss how culture influences environmental choices.

Students use Padlet to contribute their own driving question ideas that connect energy conservation to daily life and cultural values (examples: 'What can we learn from how different cultures use energy?' or 'How do our communities' values shape our relationship with electricity?').

Students vote on the most meaningful driving question using the Padlet voting feature, discussing why certain questions spark their curiosity.

The class collaborates with Australian peers via asynchronous forum posts on the project board to finalize one shared driving question that resonates with both classrooms.

Students reflect individually on how the final driving question connects to their own lives and communities, recording their thoughts in a brief journal entry or voice memo.

Students conduct interviews with family members, asking questions about energy use at home: 'What energy-saving habits does your family practice?' and 'Why do you think these habits are important?'.

Students observe and document energy use at home and school through photos, videos, or written reflections, capturing examples of light switches, appliances, renewable energy sources, or conservation behaviors.

Each student creates a personal mini-portfolio using Google Docs or Canva showing 3-4 local energy-saving practices they discovered, with descriptions and photos.

Students reflect on the cultural values behind these practices, writing short explanations of how concepts like frugality, environmental respect, or community responsibility influence their community's energy choices.

Students share their mini-portfolios with their small group using the Class2Class group functionality, discussing patterns and unique practices they discovered.

The class compiles key findings into a shared document on the project board, creating a visual map of their community's energy-saving approaches.

Working in small teams, students synthesize their local research into a creative eco-friendly campaign using one format: poster, infographic, short video, or digital mural created in Canva or Google Slides.

Each campaign highlights energy-saving habits from their community and includes visual explanations of the cultural values behind these choices (e.g., 'Our community values frugality, so we turn off lights when leaving a room').

Teams prepare a 3-5 minute presentation script explaining their campaign, the energy-saving practices featured, and the cultural values that motivate them.

Teams practice their presentations within their small group and with the teacher, refining their explanations and preparing questions they want to ask Australian peers about their energy approaches.

Teams record their campaign presentations as videos and upload them to the Class2Class project board for asynchronous sharing with the Australian class.

Students watch Australian campaign presentations and post thoughtful questions and comments on the project board, asking about specific practices or cultural differences they noticed.

Students engage in guided forum discussions on the project board, responding to Australian peers' questions about their campaigns and asking follow-up questions about Australian energy practices.

Working in small teams, students document comparisons between their community's and Australia's approaches to energy conservation in a shared Google Doc, noting cultural, environmental, and practical differences (e.g., 'We use solar panels in both places, but for different reasons').

Students identify surprising similarities and differences, recording observations like 'Both countries value saving money' or 'Australia uses more renewable energy because of their climate'.

Teams create a visual comparison chart or infographic using Canva showing side-by-side energy practices from both countries, highlighting how culture shapes environmental choices.

Students use the group chat feature to discuss their findings with teammates and ask clarifying questions of Australian peers asynchronously.

Students from both classes collaborate asynchronously to identify the strongest ideas from each country's campaigns, discussing which energy-saving practices and cultural values to feature in a merged global campaign.

Using Canva, Miro, or Google Slides, international teams co-design a digital mural, infographic, or short video that integrates both cultures' approaches to energy conservation.

The integrated campaign celebrates how different cultures can work together on environmental solutions, visually showing practices from both countries and explaining their shared commitment to protecting the environment.

Students add captions or short text explanations that connect each practice to the cultural values behind it, creating a bridge between the two communities.

Teams review the co-created campaign together via video call or asynchronous feedback, celebrating the collaborative achievement and discussing what they learned from working with international peers.

Students plan a local Energy Fair event, deciding on the date, location (school gymnasium, cafeteria, or outdoor space), and layout for displaying their campaigns and interactive stations.

Small teams design and prepare interactive stations at the fair where visitors can learn about energy-saving habits, answer quiz questions, or participate in hands-on activities (e.g., 'Calculate your family's energy savings' or 'Design your own eco-friendly habit').

Students create printed or digital displays of their local and international campaign materials, including posters, infographics, videos, and the integrated global campaign.

Students prepare brief presentations (2-3 minutes each) to deliver at the Energy Fair, explaining their campaigns and key learnings about energy conservation and cultural differences to families and school community members.

The class uploads a curated gallery of all campaign products (local campaigns, Australian campaigns, and the integrated global campaign) to the Class2Class project board as a public exhibition.

Students organize the Energy Fair event, welcoming visitors, presenting at their stations, and sharing their intercultural learning with the broader school community.

Students participate in a guided reflection discussion using prompts: 'What surprised you about how Australians approach energy conservation?' and 'How did learning from another culture change your thinking about environmental action?'.

Each student reflects individually on the question: 'What did you discover about your own community's values through this project?' and records their thoughts in a brief written response or voice memo.

Students create short video reflections (1-2 minutes) sharing a key insight they gained about intercultural collaboration, energy conservation, or global citizenship.

The class collaborates to create a collective reflection mural using Padlet, where each student posts one sentence or image representing their most important learning from the project.

Students share their reflections on the project board, reading and responding to peers' insights and celebrating their collective intercultural journey.

The teacher facilitates a closing circle where students share verbal reflections, discuss how they will continue energy-saving practices at home, and acknowledge the value of learning from international peers.