PROJECT IDEA EXCHANGE “PIE” MONTHLY NEWSLETTER DECEMBER 2001 VOLUME 1: NO. 2 www.mcvts.net/pie Sponsored by: Middlesex County Vocational/Technical Schools PIE DIRECTOR’S NOTES Welcome to this issue of the PROJECT IDEA EXCHANGE (PIE) MONTHLY NEWSLETTER. PIE continues to develop a strong membership base. Members now include Australia, Denmark, Japan, the People’s Republic of China, Russia, Turkey and sixteen American states. As members, please begin to design and implement new educational programs and efforts. I invite each member to share his or her new and successful endeavors. Please inform others of any lessons, websites, programs and such that you have found beneficial. Send me a description of your efforts and findings if you wish to have it published in the PIE Newsletter. To submit a story for publication in the newsletter, contact me, Ernie Read (PIE Director), at erreadiii@aol.com or reade_pie@mail.mcvts.net/pie. I am always open to and welcome suggestions and comments. PROGRAM OF THE MONTH Geography and Life Research Project Grade 9 students at the Middlesex County Vocational/Technical High School’s Perth Amboy Campus are currently working on a Geography and Life Project focusing on a selected country or an American state. This is a Cross-Curriculum effort, combining and enhancing skills in both English and Social Studies areas. The project requires that each student complete three tasks, each which builds upon the previous task. The first task is research. This involves more than the usual print and Internet data sources. Each student is required to contact, via email, someone in his or her geographic area of study. Some students will be contacting PIE members, asking for their assistance. This is a wonderful opportunity for PIE teacher members to involve their students in assisting others in learning about different areas of the world. Students are also contacting Permanent Missions at the United Nations for additional data. A complete listing of each Mission, with their e-mail address, can be found at the official United Nations website (www.un.org).  Once the research data has been gathered, the students will then write their paper. Each paper must examine the area’s geography and problems/issues faced by the inhabitants of that area. The students are then to create possible solutions to address those identified problems/issues. To complete the project, the students will create an advertising program. The goal is to encourage tourists to visit the area that the students studied. Group efforts will be permitted since several students could be studying the same areas. This project can easily be modified to fit any grade level. It permits students to learn more about others, to think in a critical manner and be creative at the same time. If you wish to learn more about this technology based cross-curriculum effort, please contact Kimberly Kirchofer (kimannkay3@aol.com), Denise Serrano (missserrrano@hotmail.com) or Ernie Read (erreadiii@aol.com) or visit the MESSAGE FORUM/HISTORY PROJECTS/GEOGRAPHY and LIFE on the PIE Website (www.mcvts.net/pie) to read about the project. PIE MEMBERSHIP NEWS I am pleased to announce and welcome the new members to the PIE Network. Gul Aydin: Anatolian High School of Fine Arts – Turkey Luis Herarra: Architect/Friend of Arts & Design Education-California, USA Torben P. Jensen; Langkaer Gymnasium (Webmaster; History Teacher)-Denmark Natasha Kruglova: Sunhill School-Moscow Region, Russia Linda O’Connell: Fredonia Central H.S. (History Teacher)-New York, USA Juan Rodriguez: Friend of Education & Student Motivation-New Jersey, USA Greg Vallee: Thoreau Elementary School (Grade 6 Teacher)-Wisconsin, USA For more detailed information describing the new PIE members and for the full membership listing, access the PIE website at www.mcvts.net/pie and click on MEMBERSHIP LISTING. PIE “TIP OF THE MONTH” Are you looking for e-pals or pen pals for your students? Some of the newest members of PIE are looking to establish these contacts with other schools. Natasha Kruglova of Russia and Gul Aydin of Turkey are two teachers looking to establish international communications between students.  Also, I am contact with schools in France, Germany and Greece and hopefully soon, they will also join PIE. If you need further assistance or have any suggestions, please contact Ernie Read at erreadiii@aol.com and reade_pie@mail.mcvts.net/pie. One additional item. In order to provide the maximum benefits of the PIE NEWSLETTERS, all NEWSLETTERS will be posted on the MESSAGE FORUM (www.mcvts.net/pie).  To access past issues, simply click on OTHER TOPICS and select the issue that you wish to review. Season’s Greetings As 2001 draws to a close, may I take this opportunity to extend my best wishes to you. In some ways it has been a year of glory, in others, sadness. No matter how you mark this time of year, please continue your efforts to help others better understand the value and necessity of world peace and international cooperation. May the New Year bring you and those dear to you peace and happiness. UNTIL THE NEXT ISSUE: BE WELL, SAFE AND HAPPY! Ernie Read: PIE Director